Analysis and Health Risk Evaluation of Aflatoxin B1 Levels in Groundnut (Arachis hypogea ) and Maize (Zea mays ) Samples from Wukari, Nigeria

Abstract

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a secondary fungal metabolite which is considered a public health concern worldwide due to its genotoxicity and carcinogenicity. In this study, we evaluated the levels and potential health effects of AFB1 in Groundnut and Maize samples from Wukari, Nigeria. Ten samples (each) of maize and groundnuts were collected randomly from local markets and analysed for AFB1. Our findings revealed the presence of AFB1 in all the samples investigated with concentrations ranging between 7.79 – 14.08 μg/kg in groundnuts and 1.48 -15.50 μg/kg in maize samples. Overall, 90% of the analysed samples contained aflatoxin B1 above the allowed limit of 5 μg/kg. The assessment of chronic exposure and probalistic health risk from consumption of AFB1 in the investigated food samples was done via chronic daily intake (CDI) and margin of exposure (MOE) evaluations. Obtained CDI values for groundnut ranged between 14.96 – 28.74 ng·kg−1 BW day−1 for children and 3.20 – 6.15 ng·kg−1 BW day−1 for adults while for maize the values were in the range of 5.38 – 56.42 ng·kg−1 BW day−1 for children and 1.15 – 12.09 ng·kg−1 BW day−1 for adults. MOE values ranged between 3.01 – 31.60 for children and 14.06 – 147.83 for adults. The obtained MOE values are by far lower that the recommended ≥10,000 value thus indicating high carcinogenic risks to consumers of the food items. There is need to create more awareness and interventions on aflatoxin contamination of food sources in Nigeria.